As I've said, Phyllis is a lovely lady who loves Bama--and has good reason to do so. Let me share a story that will be written up in my Songs of the South series that explains her Bama love.
One of her four children, a son, has been afflicted with multiple disabilities since birth but the most visible is a neurological condition that gives his right side a serious and constant shake. When he was in high school, of course, the kid was bullied and humiliated daily. So the one thing that brought the boy out of his weekly hell was Alabama football. And his mom wrote a letter to the bama head coach, Gene Stallings, asking for an autographed picture because her "son needs a hero right now". The next week, she gets a call from Stallings office inviting her to bring her son to the UA athletic department. Naturally they go. They meet Coach Stallings, who takes them on a tour, they see the locker room, they meet the players, they watch practice. The kid tells Stallings all about what's going on at school, and the coach gives his some advice after actually LISTENING. The SID takes lots of pictures and the boy goes home with lots of swag. That would be the end of the story with most coaches. Not this one.
The next week, the kid gets a poster of himself, Stallings and the team. Autographed by them. And in his handwritten note accompanying that poster, Stallings wrote:" If its okay with your mom, take this to school and show those kids who your best friends are. I bet they'll leave you alone." And still to this day, and Stallings has to be what? 75 at least. To this day, Stallings still calls, writes. Emails and visits Phyllis's son, who's now in his 30s. As she said when I interviewed her, "Celina, how could I not love Alabama when they gave my son something I couldn't give him myself? Self confidence." (Hopefully this will be more detailed and better written when it comes out in SOS and I'm not on my phone)
So, yeah. Sorry. Just because Phyllis doesn't name player rosters or hasn't the same kinds of knowledge of the game as us doesn't disqualify her from being a fan or loving her school. She's passionate about Alabama, and for good reason. She's never claimed to be anything other than what she is: a woman who loves her team enough to call up a radio show and go off on people who trash the Tide. And God knows, you sure as heck dont have to have any knowledge to do that. My grandmother passed away at 97, and couldnt even name Peyton when he played. He was "that skinny boy who throws the ball."
But, she wore orange every Saturday, some UT scarf or earrings or a jacket--EVERY Saturday i can remember from the mid 70s to the day she died in 2004. She loved her Vols. She stood about four foot nine, was itty bitty--and would browbeat a big man out of the room if he badmouthed Tennessee. And I'm certainly not the only Vol who thinks that way, as is evidenced
by this post and the thread that follows it.
And let's keep in mind that nutcases like...oh, say Harvey Updike CAN reel off rosters. So by your standards he's an acceptable fan. Whereas to me, he's a jacked up tree killer and undeserving of any title other than that.
So anyway, that's where I stand. Go Vols.